The invention relates to wireless communications networks and, more particularly, the invention relates to reducing channel distortion in a broadband, wireless communications network.
Residences are presently coupled to many sources of audio/visual entertainment, communications, and computing signals, including, computer modems, cable television feeds, satellite television feeds, telephone, over-the-air television and so on. Each of these sources of signals enters a residence and is routed via cables to an associated communications appliance, i.e., the telephone signals are routed through the home on a twisted-pair cable to a telephone, the cable television signals are routed through the home on a coaxial cable to a cable set top box, and so on. As such, a residence has many cables, wires and other communications connections throughout the home. Each time an appliance is to be moved from one location to another, the signal cabling must be rerouted. Such cutting and splicing leads to noisy connections and signal degradation that severely effects the fidelity of the signal.
To remedy this problem, wireless local area networks (LAN) have been developed, for example, in accordance to the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standard 802.11a. However, most wireless local area networks are subject to channel distortion or multipath caused by noise, doppler shifts, and the like. The multipath results in fading or signal degradation of a transmitted signal. Since such channel distortion adversely affects the performance of the wireless local area networks. Thus, there exists a need in the art to reduce these effects of channel distortion.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for reducing channel distortion in a broadband, wireless network comprising a residential communications gateway that accepts all incoming communications signals and securely broadcasts those signals throughout a residence or an enterprise. In one embodiment, the gateway comprises a space time block encoder to reduce the effects of multipath and at least one error correction decoder to provide error correction. The space time block encoder generates at least two space time block coded signals transmitted over the wireless network. Each space time block coded signal is transmitted using a different antenna.
Each communications appliance within a residence or enterprise is outfitted with a receiver that decodes the broadcast signals and couples the signals to the input terminals of the associated communications appliance. The system is completely xe2x80x9cplug-and-playxe2x80x9d such that a user can quickly and easily utilize the gateway for many communications appliances.